Abstract
Among the different meanings of the word ‘information’, there is at least one which makes it closely connected with decision-making. It usually is referred to as ‘pragmatic information’,1 the adjective indicating that what we have in mind is information for some purpose.
Reprinted from Theory and Decision 1 (1974), D. Reidel Publishing Company, Dordrecht-Holland.
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Bibliography
C. Cherry, On Human Communication: A Review, a Survey and a Criticism, New York, 1957.
C. G. Hempel, ‘Inductive Inconsistencies’, Synthese 12 (1960) 439–469.
J. Hintikka, ‘The Varieties of Information and Scientific Explanation’, in Logic, Methodology and Philosophy of Science III (ed. by B. van Rotselaar and J. F. Staal), Amsterdam 1968.
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References
Cf., for instance, Cherry [1]. This shows, incidentally, that the notion was loosely discussed at least some 15 years ago.
Strictly speaking, dept is a representative of a (non-empty) class, as there may be more than one optimal decision function. However, if this is the case, they all satisfy (4), hence lead to the same utility (5).
The same remark applies to the non-uniqueness of aept as to that of d. pt.
See [2], cf. also [5].
The definition can be justified in more detail in terms of the (non-negative) cost of obtaining information. Pragmatic information is then thought of as the highest cost, compatible with the optimality of a decision function belonging to the set D-A.
Some of them are dis~ussed in [4].
For the proof (in the special case of perfect information), see [6].
Strictly speaking, in (37) the element sign ought then to be replaced by identity.
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Szaniawski, K. (1977). Two Concepts of Information. In: Przełęcki, M., Wójcicki, R. (eds) Twenty-Five Years of Logical Methodology in Poland. Synthese Library, vol 87. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-1126-6_30
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-1126-6_30
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